A dose of kindness for local woman who lost her purse
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PORTLAND, Ore. – The holidays just got a whole lot brighter for one local woman who thought she lost her coin purse for good.
We first talked on Saturday with Mariah Taylor, a Portland philanthropist who founded a health care clinic in 1980. Known for her longtime charitable giving, she was even presented an award by Oprah for her work.
Taylor lost her purse during Friday’s tree lighting ceremony at Pioneer Courthouse Square.
The purse found its way back to Taylor thanks to the help of a MAX operator who turned it in on Saturday after discovering it during a red line shift.
But Taylor didn’t know all that when she received a note from TriMet, indicating it had an item that may belong to her.
We went with Taylor to the TriMet office in Southeast Portland. She was unsure what to expect.
“I've learned to pray, and I've put things in God's hands and he knows how to work things out,” she said.
So when a TriMet worker presented her with her beloved coin purse, Taylor was ecstatic. “Oh my goodness, yes, yes, yes!” she exclaimed.
Taylor’s cards were still in the purse, but she was missing all of her money, except for a single penny.
We weren’t surprised about her reaction.
“If they were able to use the money that was in here, then I say God bless them,” she said.
Taylor said she will focus on the positive, not whoever stole her purse, but the operator who turned it in.
“I'm thankful to have it back and to whomever left me this penny,” she said.
"...Taylor said she will focus on the positive, not whoever stole her purse, but the operator who turned it in.âI'm thankful to have it back and to whomever left me this penny,â she said...." Â Great positive attitude!
Moral of the story: if the coin purse is that important to you , buy another one to carry your stuff in and leave the other one @ home.
 @JLO What we do without you?
What a sweet, lovely lady, with such a positive attitude. I'm glad she got her purse back.
haha...nice touch leaving a penny...If it's green, purse will be clean - round and brown tends to stick around.
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I remember how grateful I was when I lost my wallet and someone took the time to track me down and return it with everything intact. It was such a good feeling to get it back that I made a point to 'pay it forward'. Fast-forward 20 years and the opportunity presented itself. I found a purse while stopped at an intersection. I gathered the info from the driver's license and was able to get a phone number. There was about $60 and 3 or 4 credit cards.
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She was so happy to get her purse back that she handed me a hundred bucks and refused to take it back when I politely declined. The reward was nice, but to see the relief on her face when she got her purse back was priceless.Â
 @str1ngb3nd3r Yay, you!! Thx for a good story and doing good. Please clone yourself now because we need more of you.
If she's able to do anything with that penny, God bless her.
 @xilef regnu There was some famous multi-millionaire some decades ago who began life here in the US as a young immigrant with, what, 30 cents or something in his pocket.  Anyone have the name handy?